Hot on the heels of last week’s Sport for Business Round Table on Sports Analytics, it was announced yesterday that Kitman Labs, a start up based around analysis and injury prevention, has raised sufficient funding to create 24 jobs in the field and expand from its Dun Laoghaire base to take on the UK market.
The business was founded in December 2012 and has developed profiling software which enables sports teams and coaches to rapidly analyse data points gained from historical athlete data, a daily 10 minute muscoloskeletal assessment and the particular schedule of training and competition that is being planned and undertaken.
Investors including Enterprise Ireland on behalf of the Government, rugby stars Jamie Heaslip and Kevin McGlaughlin and Barry Maloney of Balderton Capital have contributed just under €500,000 into the latest round of funding and this is what has given rise to the new jobs the first of which are already being advertised.
Kitman Labs’ founder Iarflaith Kelly, Stephen Smith and Jason Cowman combine coaching and software development skills and have built the software used by the company from scratch.
They collaborated with the Statistical Science department at trinity College to produce the right blend of academic input, sports experience and smart business planning.
It is a fine example of the increasing number of sports analysis companies that are emerging from incubators and digital hubs around Ireland.
In last week’s Round Table we highlighted some of the opportunities and some of the challenges that need to be overcome in order to maintain a strong position in the sector.
Next week Sport for Business is bringing together a small group of individuals to explore an exciting idea that may position Ireland as a central point for companies in this fast developing world of Sports Analytics. It is a sector which is already worth hundreds of millions of Euro’s and which is increasingly seen as a critical component within the $400 Billion global sports industry.
“At the heart of the Government’s Action Plan for Jobs is our determination to create a powerful engine of Irish exporting businesses,” said Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton.
“Today’s announcement that Kitman Labs is to create 24 new jobs over the next three years, as the company expands their operations into the UK market, is very welcome.”
“Here is an Irish company which, with the support of my Department and Enterprise Ireland in particular, is developing innovative products, pursuing new markets, and creating new jobs.”
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